Six Centuries of Madeira History
The Madeira history started with its discovery in 1418 by two captains under service to Prince Henry the Navigator. But documents show that there had already been some knowledge about the islands from archipelago, even a century before this discovery.
Madeira History
The two captains, who first found the island of Porto Santo after being driven off-course by a storm, were Tristao Vaz Teixeira and Joao Goncalvez Zarco. His statue is right in the centre of Funchal. After leaving Porto Santo the two discovered Madeira. They arrived first in the city of Machico. The legend has it that Zarco decided to put the island on fire since there were too many trees covering it and that the fire lasted for seven years. Since then, the island belongs to Portugal and for many centuries the main activity of the inhabitants was agriculture. Madeira was for three centuries one of the biggest producers of sugar in the world, after the sugar cane was brought, but once Brazil overthrew the island, the inhabitants concentrated on the wine industry.
Discovering Madeira History
You can start discovering Madeira history by going to the centre of Funchal, which still preserves the old buildings and houses of the people living there. You may also dive into the islands history by visiting Pico Fortress, which was built in the early 17th century to protect the island against the frequent pirate attacks or Sao Tiago Fort, which houses the Museum of Modern Art and has a pleasant view over the sea.
The best museums for finding out more about the history of these islands are the Madeira Story Centre and the Natural History Museum. The first is located in the old part of Funchal, where you have an overview of 14 million years of Madeira history, starting from the geological formation of the archipelago.
Timeline of Madeira History
Here are some short historical facts about the island:
1418: Tristao Vaz Teixeira and Joao Goncalvez Zarco discover the island, first getting to Porto Santo. It was the first discovery from the period of explorations made by the Portuguese. A few years later, the first people settle on the island, coming mainly from the Portuguese south region of Algarve.
1455: Madeira starts to develop as a sugar producer, soon overtaking Cyprus and becoming one of the biggest in the world. By the 16th century, 10% of the total population it represented slaves imported for the cultivation of sugar cane.
1580: Portugal and Madeira became under the domain of Castille. However, in 1640, their independence was restored.
17th century: Madeira starts losing terrain to Brazil as a sugar exporter and concentrates on its wine production, which soon becomes famous all over the world.
1807-1814: A short and friendly period of British occupation as a result of the Napoleonic Wars, after which the island was returned to Portugal.
1850's: Embroidery was introduced, an industry which soon added to the islands' revenues. Also, the first tourists visited the island. At the turn of the century, the banana was introduced as an additional crop.
1901: Madeira was granted limited autonomy
1976, 1st of July: Following the democratic revolution of 1974, Portugal granted political autonomy to Madeira, celebrated each year as Madeira Day. The region has its own government and legislative assembly.
More Madeira history is explained in the links contained on this page.